


Are You a Cake?

by trixareforeveryone



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV), The Great British Bake Off RPF
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Pick Up Lines, competitive baking, don’t need to know the show to read, just pure fluffy goodness, meet cute, puns
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-05
Updated: 2019-10-05
Packaged: 2020-11-23 23:33:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 15,338
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20897951
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/trixareforeveryone/pseuds/trixareforeveryone
Summary: The only reason Dany applied in the first place was to get Missandei off her back. She never actually expected to be chosen to compete on The Great British Baking Show.She also never expected to be so attracted to one of the other bakers. But by everything holy, she was going to get it across to Jon Snow that she was single and very very interested.And she knew just the way to do it.•••••••Or the GBBO fusion for Jonerys AU month where Dany gives Jon cheesy pick up lines (pun intended).





	Are You a Cake?

**Author's Note:**

> Because GBBO is wholesome AF, so why not?
> 
> Most challenges I took straight from the show, others I made up. Flavors were either found on Pinterest or made up by myself.
> 
> Thanks jalenmara for being such a wonderful beta and idea bouncer!

—– Week 1: Cake Week—–

At twenty seven, Dany couldn’t believe she was actually here in the tent. Out of the thousands of people who applied, she was one of the twelve deemed worthy enough to compete for the chance of being this year’s top amateur baker in Britain. 

The only reason she’d actually applied was because Missandei had hounded her about it for months. At first, she’d said no, feeling that she didn’t have time with her job as a social justice specialist for several big corporations and a few non-profits. But then Missandei had gone so far as to find out how to apply and getting everything Dany needed. So, she’d done it to placate her best friend, not truly believing that she’d be chosen. But then she’d gotten a call from the show, which she thought for a moment was a joke. The next thing she knew, she was being emailed the challenges in order to get her recipes ready, talking to more people than she could remember, and having a filming crew come over to get shots of her daily life. 

They'd had to go to the manor the weekend prior to meet with the production team. After signing all the necessary forms and contracts, the team over everything from filming procedures and competition rules to allowed times to use the loo during a challenge. They’d then been given their schedules for each round. It was almost overwhelming how many little details there were that went into the show that Dany had never even considered. 

It’d also been a great opportunity for Dany to meet the other contestants. 

There was Lollys Stokeworth, a stay at home mum, who Dany thought a bit…simple. But she seemed like a very sweet woman regardless. 

Jhogo Katri, the sports marketer who’d moved to England from Sri Lanka, was quite sociable and quick to laugh. She could see how he was able to persuade teams to buy his company’s products. 

Davos Seaworth had a very fatherly persona that Dany found extremely comforting. And no wonder, since the Cockney fishmonger had seven sons. Dany gave his wife major kudos for that feat. 

Upon first impression, Dany found it hard to believe that Sandor Clegane was a man who was interested in baking. He was just so intimidating looking. The former military man had apparently gotten into baking after being honorably discharged due to getting hit by an IED. She thought his job as a stuntman/bouncer was highly appropriate. 

Though Trystane Martell was only a few years younger than she was, the university student had a sweetness about him that made Dany feel a sisterly urge to wrap him up and protect him. 

Roslin Frey was a soft spoken teacher that had Dany wondering if she had the toughness to be able to handle such a hectic environment. But maybe the woman would surprise them. 

Sam Tarly, on the other hand, definitely gave off the impression that he wouldn’t be able to handle the weight of Paul’s stare. The extremely rotund young man was so timid and awkward, that Dany felt a bit bad for him because she knew he didn’t have a mean bone in his body. But what he lacked in physicality and social skills, he gained in intelligence. 

Dany quite liked Margaery Tyrell. The PR director had an easy smile and was a social chameleon, able to find something in common with everyone. While there was a shrewdness in her brown doe eyes that gave Dany the feeling that every word and action was thought out, Margaery also seemed sincere in her niceties. 

While very short and the type of stout, grey haired look one would imagine Mrs. Claus to have in those old timey movies, Maege Mormont was a firecracker. Dany would admit that upon learning the woman was an avid hunter and knew how to throw an axe, she gained a healthy dose of respect laced with a sprinkle of fear towards her. 

Then there was Jeyne Westerling. The wedding planner assistant had an easy smile and kind brown eyes. Though she seemed quite shy, so Dany understood why she was better as an assistant. She was sure the chest haired woman would be spectacular at cakes from being around so many for her job. 

But the one that intrigued her the most was Jon Snow. She was surprised to learn that the Northern born Sergeant didn’t actually live that far from her. The initial intrigue was due to how handsome she thought he was with his deep baritone voice, heather grey eyes, and dark curls pulled back from his face. The main reason it lingered however was because while he was perfectly polite when spoken to, he was very quiet and almost always wore an unreadable expression. Dany had never quite understood the whole appeal women had for that brooding, mysterious type until meeting Jon. 

Yet whenever he smiled, which seemed rarely, it changed his entire face. They were always different too. When he spoke of his family, the love he had for them was evident and strong. When he’d talk with Sam, the small tilt at the corners of his full lips held fondness for the ever-nervous, babbling contestant that Jon seemed to have formed a fast friendship with. 

Did Dany realize that she obviously stared at a man that she just met way too much to have noticed such things? 

Yes. Yes, she did. 

Was she going to stop?

No. No, she was not. 

And thanks to Margaery’s social skills, they’d all gotten each other’s numbers before leaving. So there was also that.

But for now, she was too busy to focus on anything but getting her hands to stop shaking so her upside plum and cardamom cake would be ready for the signature. It was even more nerve wracking than she was expecting, yet equally thrilling to be standing in front of Paul and Prue as she explained her cake. She’d always thought having Paul’s crazy blue eyes were intimidating when he gave the contestants that signature stare of his, but she still wasn’t prepared when they were staring at _her_. 

“It’s my great great uncle Aemon’s recipe,” she told them. “One of his favorites. He’s extremely picky about it ever since he lost his sight.” 

“Two greats? How old is he?” Noel asked curiously. 

“He just turned a hundred and one. I try to visit him at his monastery at least twice a week,” she replied, unable to tame the fond smile on her face. 

“Well, family recipes are always a favorite and we’ll look forward to yours,” Prue told her before they all moved on. 

Everyone chatted while getting their toppings and decorations ready for their cakes while they baked and she got to learn more about them. Though she’d never trade what she had at the monastery, it was nice to be able to talk to people closer to her own age about baking. The only friends she really had were Missandei and Grey. She saw Gendry whenever their schedules would allow it, but he was a few hours away from her. Rhaegar lived in Spain with Elia and their kids. And she’d not really spoken to Viserys in two years. The monastery was her second home. 

So when Sam timidly asked more about it, she told him with pride that she’d practically grown up there with the amount of time she’d spent visiting her uncle and that it’s where her interest in baking started. Conversation stopped when they began checking on their cakes and they had to talk to the cameras instead. 

Since Dany didn’t need decorations or toppings of her own, once she flipped her cake and got it set out, she decided to spice it up and put the remaining plums in a small crescent with a dollop of the yoghurt she’d used in the middle then sprinkled some cut up pistachios on them. Finished, made her way around the tent to help whoever needed it. 

Sandi came up to her at one point and had said that she had to know how long it took to do her hair. After doing her hair in many different styles of plaits for so many years, it only took her less than half an hour, which surprised Sandi.

When the judges finally came to her, they were impressed by how vibrant the purple of the plums came out. Being told by two of the best bakers out there that give uncle Aemon their compliments about how good his cake tasted made Dany feel so relieved and proud. Maybe she actually had a shot at this. 

_ Okay, maybe I don’t _, she thought as she read the instructions for the technical. She had no idea what a la gâteau vert was. Throughout the entire time, she kept looking around at everyone else’s to compare. 

By the time Noel said they had to step away, Dany was glad that she was able to come up with something . Her something ended up coming in the ninth so she wasn’t going to complain too much. She was also going to check la gâteau vert off her list of things to try and literally never bake one again. But at least she came in seventh and not last like she’d expected. 

~~~~~~~~

_ Gods, I’m not going to finish. Why did I choose to do Bag End as my showstopper? _ Dany panicked to herself. There had to be easier landscape ideas to do but oh no, she had to go be _original_. 

As if sent from above, hands suddenly appeared and she glanced up to find Margaery start helping her put the stone step biscuits on as she finished styling the grass on the top. Then they switched and Margaery placed the small flowers around while she did the grass icing around the steps. She’d just stuck the small gate into it when Sandi called time and told them to step away from their cakes. 

“Thank you so much,” she said to the brunette with a grateful smile before it turned impish. “You made everything so much _ butter _ .” 

Big doe eyes blinked once at her before Margaery let out a sigh and shook her head as if disappointed in her pun. “Oh, Daenerys.” 

“What?” When she heard a breathy huff of laughter, she turned to find Jon smiling ever so slightly as he wiped down his station. Gesturing to him, she said, “Jon likes my sense of humor.” 

Margaery’s lips tilted into the barest of smirks but didn’t say anything as it was time to clean everything off so they could present their cakes to Paul and Prue. Looking around at all the others, the butterflies in Dany’s took off tenfold at whether or not her cake would be good enough to allow her to stay.   
  


Thankfully, they had found her decorations good enough and the cake itself had passed in taste and texture.

As they were all congratulating Margaery for receiving star baker and giving their regards to Lollys who got sent home, Jon’s eyes found hers and he gave her a small, encouraging smile. Dany was big enough to admit that a selfish, greedy part of her wanted him to give her more smiles. Maybe a smile that was only for her. 

When they all headed out of the tent, she thought maybe she could get him to smile more and let him know she was single. Single and very, very interested. 

—–Week 2: Biscuit Week—–

The desire grew more intense when she happened to turn around to him while they were all waiting for their biscuits to bake for the signature, only to find his arms above his head mid-stretch. Her eyes latched onto the way the pose showed off his muscles. Dany felt her mouth go a little dry at the sudden yearning to see what he looked like without a shirt on. 

She turned away before she was caught ogling him. Now wasn’t the time to think of such things. Once again, she needed to focus on making sure she’d still be here next week. She caught Margaery’s eye across the tent and the brunette gave her a knowing smirk and waggle of her eyebrows. She narrowed her own eyes at her then turned to shut her timer off. 

~~~~~~~~~

“I wouldn’t have thought that _ dandelion _ would be something that I’d put in a shortbread, but the way it mixes with the rosemary is fantastic. It does have that sweet and savory combination,” Paul said after what she felt was the longest chew ever. Dany released the breath she’d been holding in relief. 

Prue nodded. “The texture is what you expect out of a shortbread. It just melts on the tongue. Absolutely lovely. I would be able to eat a packet of those with a cup of tea.” 

“It’s a perfect biscuit,” Paul concluded before holding out his hand to her. Dany was over the moon as she shook it. 

Once everyone’s biscuits had been tasted, she grabbed one of her biscuits and went over to Jon’s station to set her plan into motion. She’d settled on expanding from what she’d told him last week. She’d found as many food based compliments and pick up lines as she could that were light hearted enough that it wouldn’t be awkward if he wasn’t interested. Leaning a hip against the counter, she gave him a sweet smile when he turned to her. 

“Would I be able to try one of your biscuits?” she asked. 

Jon mirrored her pose. “Only if I get to try one of your Hollywood-handshake-worthy biscuits.” 

Grinning, Dany held out hers and they traded. She took a bite of his pumpkin spice coffee biscuit and hummed her approval as she finished it off. 

“That’s really, really good. I would’ve never thought of those flavors,” she told him, wiping the crumbs off on her apron. 

She thought the way one side of his mouth turned up as he glanced down for a split second at her compliment in shyness was adorable. 

“Thanks,” he said quietly. “I can definitely see why you got a handshake. It’s a great flavor.” 

It was now or never. Time to test the waters. 

“You know, if you were coffee grounds, you’d be espresso,” she told him, keeping her face straight. 

Jon’s brow furrowed and he looked at her curiously. “What? Why?”

With a small smirk that portrayed much more confidence than she felt, she took the plunge and said, “because you’re so fine.” 

Now, his dark brows shot up in surprise before his expression turned to amusement. Dany was so relieved when he let out another of his breathy chuckles. His lips turned up into a lovely smile that warmed her chest as he shook his head. 

“Is this going to become a thing now? Punny food compliments and lines to match what we’re making?” he asked, referring to last week. 

Dany was excited that he remembered but didn’t let it show. Instead, she arched an eyebrow in challenge. “Would my witty efforts to lighten the mood and have some fun go unappreciated if it _ did _ become a thing?” 

Looking down, his smile turned bashful. She also could have sworn that his cheeks turned a bit pink, but maybe that was just wishful thinking. “No,” he said quietly before peeking at her through his lashes. “I look forward to seeing what you come up with.” 

Immensely pleased, Dany beamed at him and quickly snatched another one of his biscuits before turning away. 

While they all ate their lunch, she saw a seat open next to him and decided to take it. She knew she’d have to start the conversation and settled on asking him more about his dog that she’d heard him mention. He immediately opened up then, shifting into “proud pet parent” mode as he quietly told her about his albino Husky mix, Ghost. He and his litter mates had been small puppies when Jon had been driving with his cousin, Robb, and had seen Ghost’s siblings on the side of the road near the body of their mom who’d been hit. They’d pulled over and as they were getting the five of them, he’d somehow noticed Ghost near the woods. After they’d taken care of them for so long, each of his cousins had taken one. He’d kept Ghost, naming him as such for not only his look but because he never barked. 

Dany thought that was a fantastic story and told him so. 

“Thanks. What about you? Do you have any pets?” 

Her own “proud pet parent” mode switched on, a smile on her face as she said, “yeah. Three Pomeranians.” 

Jon arched a dark brow and nodded in polite interest. “Must be a handful.” 

Dany’s smile grew as she thought of her children. “They are, yeah. They were puppy mill rejects. Viserion has problems with his back legs and has to have a little doggy wheelchair when I take him out of the house. He can get around without it but he likes to be able to keep up with his brothers when running. Rhaegal’s got a deformed paw. Drogon apparently had really bad aggression issues and was really territorial about the other two so I assume the breeder just got sick of dealing with him. I saw them on a rescue Instagram I follow and decided to apply to foster them. For some reason, they took to me as fast as I did them so it ended up being a foster fail,” she said with a chuckle. 

Jon has a soft look on his face as he gave her his faint trademark half smile. “Sounds like everyone won though.”

Dany opened her mouth to reply, but before more than a “yeah” could be said, the others joined them and they were both pulled into separate conversations. 

Her day got better when she came in second for the technical. Though she’d never made puff pastry arlettes before, much less eight, biscuits had always been her strong suit. Simple as that. She didn’t want to get ahead of herself, but she could practically taste star baker. She was also glad to see Jon come in fourth and Margaery come in eighth. Out of everyone in the tent, they were the ones she most wanted to stay. 

~~~~~~~~

Glancing between Paul and Prue as they stared at her showstopper, Dany felt like her heart was going to beat out of her chest. 

Her showstopper was a baby dragon that she’d told Noel was named Bob. It was made of cayenne gingerbread hatching from its tahini honey egg, one small wing trying to extend up with one foot stepping out. Eyes made of shiny red cinnamon candy looked back at the judges. She’d made many baby dragons before, actually turning them into a staple piece at the charity bake sales held by the town that the monastery participated in as well as the monastery’s tea shop. 

But this was different. She’d been so nervous ever since Paul hadn’t seemed too pleased that she was using a mold that Gendry had helped her make to use for the head even though she assured him that it was just the base skull to get the shape exactly right. The details she planned on adding to it and the rest of the body were to be sculpted by hand. They did like the scaled egg mold Gendry had given her for Christmas two years ago though. Through the panic, she’d made sure to give her a cousin a shoutout, hoping that part would get aired.

“I feel like I’m looking at a real dragon,” Prue said, looking up to smile at Dany. “It is absolutely wonderful.”

“It’s stunning,” Paul agreed, pointing to the biscuit for the camera close up. “I was hesitant about the mold, but I can see what you did. The detail is fantastic. It’s a shame I have to break it, but we have to see if it tastes as good as it looks.” 

“Just take its leg then. Don’t decapitate it,” Prue murmured, pointing to a piece she found acceptable. Once cut, Paul then broke off part of the egg and split the pieces between them, saying how they both had a good snap. 

“I can taste the hint of cayenne but it doesn’t over power the ginger,” Prue said. “It definitely has the heat one would associate with a dragon. The tahini biscuit soothes that heat though and gives the egg a very unique look.”

“I think overall they’re both fantastic biscuits. Well done,” Paul concluded with a nod. 

Dany murmured her thanks and took it off the table. Before she turned, Noel gave her a thumbs up and said, “Bob for the win.” 

Walking back to her station, her eyes met Jon’s and he gave her one of his crooked smiles and whispered good job to her. She thought his biscuit sword in a stone looked fantastic as well. What made it even more fantastic was that Paul had actually been able to hold it like the real thing, which he seemed to get a kick out of.   
  


“I get the fun job of announcing this week’s star baker,” Noel told them and Dany’s heart was pounding in anticipation. “This week’s star baker wowed the judges in every challenge and should probably be called the mother of dragons. Congratulations, Daenerys, you’re this week’s star baker.” 

Though it was a bit sad to see Roslin go, being awarded star baker _and_ getting a handshake _and_ having her plan to get closer to Jon turn out so successful had her on cloud nine. 

She felt like her cheeks would split when she called the monastery to share the news and listened to them all cheering, laughing when she heard Father Anthony say that his prayer asking for St. Honore to help her had been heard. Elia screamed so loud in excitement when she told her and Rhaegar that Dany had to hold the phone away from her. Missandei told her that she definitely deserved a celebratory dinner that night before she had to prepare for next week. 

Dany doubted she was going to be able to top this weekend. Although exchanging pics with Jon of their dogs “helping” with their baking and taste testing their food throughout the week was pretty great.

——Week 3: Bread Week—–

She hated how dejected he looked that his signature spicy cheese bread rolls were filled with too much cheese, making the center so under baked it bordered on raw. She had experienced the opposite with her toasted coconut purple yam rolls. Nice flavor, fun look, but too dry.

When Paul and Prue left his station and everyone began cleaning their bakes so the crew could get everything set up for the technical challenge, Dany was struck with an idea. It was stupid and would probably end up with her feeling like an idiot, but maybe it’d ease his kicked puppy expression. She grabbed the grater on her station and quickly made sure none of the cameras were on them before setting it on his. The action made him pause and look up, his brows drawn low in confusion as grey eyes met violet. 

“This may be cheesy, but I think you’re _ grate_,” she whispered, offering a conciliatory smile. 

Though she felt heat want rise in her cheeks as Jon just blinked at her with that unreadable expression for so long it slowly began to border on awkward, she didn’t look away. Finally, his features softened. His lips twitched into the faintest of smiles and he huffed a silent chuckle. Just once, holding more self deprecation than humor, but it was enough. 

“Hey, as long as you don’t get last in the technical and your showstopper is good, they’re not going to send you home over this.”

Taking a deep breath, he nodded. “You’re right. Thanks, Dany,” he murmured with the small, crooked smile that part of her had started to deem as _hers_. 

Thankfully, his mood got better while they were all eating lunch. Sam and Davos were really good at encouraging Jon and helping his confidence boost up.

When they were tasked with making bialys for their technical and Trystane commented on how they reminded him of bagels, Dany bit her lip and smiled. 

Luckily, Jon redeemed himself by coming in fifth on the technical and Dany herself had come in seventh which wasn’t great, but it wasn’t awful so she’d take it. 

As they left the tent, she bumped him with her shoulder. He turned his head to look at her, raising a brow in question. 

“Do you like bagels? Because you are definitely _bae goals_.” 

A large grin slowly spread across his face and he gently bumped her back as he huffed a small laugh. “That’s actually a good one.” 

~~~~~~~~~

The next day, as they were all waiting for their doughs to prove, Dany asked Jon what got him into baking. 

“My aunt,” he said quietly, eyes getting a far away look as he went through his memories. “My mum died when I was born so I grew up with my uncle’s family. Aunt Cat always told me stories about my mum. I was six when she told me that she and mum loved baking and cooking together, always trying to outdo each other. So, I asked her to teach me and it just stuck. It became our thing.” His lips twitched in a small smile. “She’s actually the one who told me I should apply for this.”

“She sounds really nice,” she murmured. 

“Yeah. What about you?” he asked, turning his head to her. 

“My mum always loved baking and she’d bake things for the tea shop at my uncle’s monastery to sell. She and my uncle taught me when I wanted to learn. My brothers weren’t interested. She passed away when I was sixteen and I’d go to the monastery almost every day just to get away. My oldest brother was busy working and my other brother was at university. So my uncle scheduled his days so that’d he’d be available to be with me. 

Sometimes he’d listen to me rage and cry, other times we’d just sit silently. One day, he started telling me about the plants in their garden and what recipes they were good for. I told him I didn’t want to bake anymore, but he and the other monks eventually convinced me to take it up again. They’re Franciscan so they’re all about viewing the good and joyous things in life. They also have a strong emphasis towards social justice and it really stuck with me. So now I bake for the tea shop as a thank you for their support then and helping me choose what I wanted to do with my life.” 

Jon was silent for a moment before saying, “I’m sorry about your mum.” 

Dany gave him a small smile. “I’m sorry about yours.” 

They sat in companionable silence until Jon asked, “so that’s how you come up with your flavors? The monks?”

She nodded. “They’re big on growing their own food and herbs and appreciating all creation and whatnot. ”

Jon nudged her with his elbow. “Maybe I should swing by, have them teach me a thing or two.”

Appreciating his attempt at lightening the mood, she laughed and said, “Father Anthony would honestly love that. The vegetable garden is his pride and joy. He’ll literally talk your ear off. And uncle Aemon always loves to help with baking. You could bring Ghost too. They allow pets since it’s part of their whole appreciating all of creation. They’ve even got a monastery dog of their own.” 

“I just may,” he told her with one of his half smiles. 

They talked a little bit more about Gandalf the monastery dog that had showed up and wouldn’t leave, how uncle Aemon called him that because he’d said that the dog had a wandering soul and had wanted to see the world. Dany thought he was just a huge Tolkien nerd and this had given him the perfect excuse to use it since the dog’s coat was gray. They then shared some stories about their families until it was time to take their doughs out. 

The showstopper plaited loaf Jon made of a large white tree with red leaves was gorgeous and got good remarks from the judges. Dany decided that a glazed loaf resembling the eye of Sauron would be fun since she got to mix up a beet dough with a turmeric dough to make the fiery eye right while getting to show off her mad plaiting skills. 

Even though Paul was thoroughly impressed with her plaits, it was Sam who ended up winning star baker and Jhogo got sent home. 

After she said goodbye to Jhogo, she walked over to Jon and hugged him, whispering, “I knew you’d be fine.”

He squeezed her tightly in silent thanks and she reveled in the sensation right before he let go. His smile was one of pure relief and she returned it, giving his arm one more squeeze then turned to Margaery. 

—-Week 4: Desserts—–

Her orange cinnamon creme brûlée custards were in the oven and there was nothing she could do now but wait to see if she mucked it up. 

“Alright, what do you have for today?” Jon asked as their creme brûlées grilled, leaning his forearms on the station. 

Dany smirked and copied his position. “You’re so hot you could burn that creme brûlée just by looking at it.” 

Jon snorted and his shook his head. “Oh, gods,” he chuckled in amusement. “I don’t know why I even ask you sometimes.” 

Before she could respond, Margaery called her over to ask her opinion on her brûlees. Dany squatted next to the brunette in front of her oven. 

“They look fine to me,” she said after observing them. 

“Yeah, that’s not actually why I called you,” Margaery murmured and leaned in closer. “Brûlées aren’t the only thing that’ll burn just from looking at it. I swear, you two are going to make us all spontaneously combust from the sexual tension. Or the whole tent will just burn to the ground. Which would probably be a good thing for you two because you wouldn’t have to worry about your clothes.”

Dany’s cheeks turned pink and she lightly shoved the now laughing woman over so she fell onto her side. Unfortunately, that just made Margaery laugh harder and draw everyone’s attention to them. 

“You’re so awful,” the blonde chuckled. Standing, she offered Margaery her hand and pulled her up as well to whisper, “but yes, without clothes is the plan.” 

Margaery smiled wickedly and held up her hand for Dany to high five. “Get in.”

She walked back over to her oven and checked on her own brûlées when she heard Davos behind her mumbling, “not looking good.” Turning around, she saw him set his brûlées out. 

“Did you put them in longer?” she asked as she looked over the cracked brûlées. 

“No. Same time as I always do at home, but they’ve just not done it.” 

Dany bit her lip. “Could you put them back in longer do you think?” 

“No, ‘cause it’s just gonna burn, innit?” he said sullenly with a sigh. “Damn.” 

Feeling the need to say something, she leaned in and whispered, “as long as the flavor is good, it should be redeemable.”

Davos gave her a wan smile. “Let’s hope.”

~~~~~~~~~

“I’m going home. I just know it.” 

Standing with her hands on her head, Dany was so dejected looking at her marjolaine. It was awful looking and probably the worst thing she’d baked in awhile. Though to be fair to herself, she’d never even heard of marjolaine until they’d been given the technical. But while her signature bake hadn’t been a complete flop and they’d liked the flavor, the custard of her brûlée had still separated. She felt she was within reason for making such a statement. 

“You’ve still got your showstopper. You’ll be okay,” a deep voice said. 

She turned to Jon, letting him see the panic in her eyes. He didn’t even hesitate to pull her into a tight hug. 

“You’ll be _ fine_, Dany,” he whispered. He held her until she took a calming breath and got a lungful of his cologne mixed with the scent of baking. She wanted to bottle it. When she nodded, he let her go so they could take their bakes to the front table. 

Coming second to last was not how she wanted to end her day, but she couldn’t dwell on it. Her day was officially in the past and if she looked back, she’d be lost. 

~~~~~~~~~~

Dany had double checked her recipes and texted Missandei making sure she had liked the flavors she’d tried before going to bed. As soon as “bake” left Sandi’s mouth, she wasted no time in getting to work and zeroed in her focus on getting her three showstopper cheesecakes were nothing less than perfect. 

Thankfully, her choices of having lavender honey, avocado lime, and strawberry champagne cheesecakes paid off. Paul and Prue had liked them both. 

Though she was shot with nerves, she still was so happy for Jon and gave him an enthusiastic smile and thumbs up when they’d sung their praises about his lychee passion fruit, orange cranberry, and blueberry cardamom cheesecakes. 

But the question remained. Would her showstopper be enough?

Dany was glad that she was seated next to Jon as they waited for the results. She grabbed his hand in nervousness, needing the reassurance. Without missing a beat, he laced their fingers together and gave her hand a squeeze. They all clapped and congratulated Sandor when he was awarded star baker. Then Sandi began speaking and she took back Jon’s hand. 

“The person we can’t take with us is….”

Daenerys , she thought and squeezed Jon’s hand so hard she was sure it’d break. 

“Maege.” 

Dany’s eyes widened as she watched Maege get off her stool to hug Sandi and Noel. Everyone else stood and the moment she was on her feet, she threw her arms around Jon’s neck. The relief that she was staying flooded through her body. 

“I told you,” he whispered against her skin. She pulled back to smile up at him and when he smiled back, she was filled with the urge to kiss him. Knowing that would be a terrible idea at the moment, she let go so she could hug Maege goodbye. It was getting so hard to see people leave. She had formed such a quick bond with these people 

And when Paul had told her she had to keep up the way she’d baked today, Dany promised she would with the full intention of keeping that promise. 

–—Week 5: Pies and Tarts—–

Seeing Jon come in wearing round rimmed glasses, Dany had to blink a couple times, unable to stop herself from thinking about how well he could pull them off. Honestly, was there ever a time when he didn’t look good?

“So I’m making pistachio cardamom panna cotta with a vanilla crust and honeysuckle jelly on top,” Dany stated. 

“You always come up with very unique flavor combinations,” Prue observed as she, Paul, and Noel stood in front of her. 

Dany gave her a light smile. “It's what happens when you don’t have much of a social life and spend so much time with friars who are very serious gardeners and even more enthusiastic test tasters,” she said, making them all laugh. 

Once everyone had described their signature, Noel came over to her station and leaned his elbow against the station top as she worked on her tart crusts. “I can’t help but notice that you’ve been out to make a certain broody looking Northerner very flustered lately.”

Instead of saying anything, Dany just glanced at him from the corner of her eye with a smirk and waggled her eyebrows. 

Noel chuckled. “Brilliant. What’s on the list for today? I think you should let me tell him and really just freak him out.” 

She snorted and shook her head at the man. It was hard to believe he was in his mid forties with how he mischievous he could be. “Your voice is as smooth as that panna cotta.” 

Letting out another chuckle, he patted the counter and said, “I’ll _ accidentally _ knock over his tarts too then, yeah? Give you a leg up.” With that, he was gone, leaving her chuckling in his goofy, gothic wake.

It was as their crusts were baking and they were all working on their panna cottas that Dany heard Noel start talking to Jon. When she heard Noel oh so casually say the line and Jon’s confused “what?” followed by “uh, thank you”, Dany tried to keep herself from laughing. She really did. But it had the complete opposite affect and only made her snort even louder. That then set off Noel. She looked over her shoulder and immediately met Jon’s grey eyes as he realized what was going on. 

“You two are the absolute worst,” he said, trying and failing to keep his face straight as Noel gave him a pat on the back before leaving him to get back to work. 

When they were walking back into the tent for their technical and she told him that he was as intoxicating as the home distilled liqueur that Sandor had brought for his panna cotta, he groaned good naturedly and said, “the _ worst _. ”

~~~~~~~~

Trying to wrap dough around a pear definitely had agreeing making a vow to herself to never ever decide to do this for fun. Because it definitely sucked. Mini pear pie her arse. This was one giant nightmare. At this point, she didn’t even care how they looked. All she wanted was to get the damned things in the oven. 

The moment the oven door shut and her timer started, she put her head in her hands on the counter top and heaved a huge sigh. 

_ These fucking things had better come out right_, she thought to herself. 

A gasp came from the other side of the tent and she turned to see Sam scrambling around his station in a panic while Jon and Sandor were trying to calm him down. When she asked Jeyne if she knew what was wrong, the quiet brunette grimaced and whispered, “he forgot to turn his oven on.” 

Dany sucked air in through her teeth, feeling sorry for the man.

She only put up with the pears from hell because she came in second, right behind Jon, who won his first technical. 

~~~~~~~~

When she’d heard Jon explain that his “Winter is Coming” hand raised water crust pie was filled with seasonal Northern autumn venison, wild mushrooms, potatoes, onions and topped with blackberries and blueberries, she had to admit it sounded delicious. However, it also gave her a perfect opportunity. 

She didn’t even start with a greeting when she had the opportunity to talk to him. Retrieving her fillings from the fridge, Dany stopped by his station on the way to hers and said, “I would love to make you part of this season’s bounty.”

What she wasn’t prepared for was the slight blush in Jon’s cheeks in response. Had she finally given him enough hints or were her previous attempts too innocent? She decided it was the latter and that she’d have to up her game. 

Her teasing smirk turned devilish when he fumbled to figure out some type of response. Deciding to put him out of his misery and needing to get going herself, Dany tapped one of the containers holding the ingredients to his filling and murmured, “you better get to work, Jon Snow” before walking away. 

Then the camera came to her and she was explaining her Caribbean curry goat pie to it as she mixed her filling. There was something about getting to talk about the why of the process that Dany always found fulfilling. 

She gave a pleased smile when her tin slid out with ease and her turmeric crust remained standing tall. Glancing around, she saw Trystane was having trouble getting his tin out of his, so she went over to help. 

“Are you allowed to do this?” he murmured as she held the crust while he pulled on the tin. 

“Of course I am,” she replied, though she actually had no idea. _ Of course _ that was when Paul decided to stop there and watch them struggle. Trystane noticed him too and leant over his tin to hide it from view. 

“No. Don’t look at it yet. Everything here is fine,” he said to the older man before dramatically gasping and pointing behind Paul. “By the gods, what’s that thing behind you?” he exclaimed, making Dany snort. Paul just rolled his eyes good naturedly and walked back the way he came. 

Trystane turned to the camera pointing at them and shook his head. “He’s the biggest wind up merchant I’ve ever met.” With that, he went back to pulling. 

Dany gave no indication that Paul had snuck up right behind Trystane who let out a noise of triumph that his tin had finally popped out. It was when he turned to set it down that he saw Paul. He jumped and let out a surprised “holy fuck.” The antic had made everyone crack up, but their focus quickly returned to their pies. 

Sandi came up as she was intricately plaiting the dough of her top crust. “You plait dough as stunningly as you plait your hair.” 

“Oh, Sandi, you’ve jinxed me,” she joked, finishing up the end. “Now it’s going to come out all wonky.”

The older woman laughed. “If it does, I’ll take the blame.”

Dany huffed out a laugh as she began filling her pie. “It wasn’t my fault, Paul. Sandi told me it’d be perfect and therefore, it got ruined. Yeah, I’m sure he’d go for that.” 

She had to ignore the smirk Sandi shot her as Paul and Prue complimented her plaiting. Even though her pie crust was too thick on the sides, making some sections a little under baked, they approved of it. 

Seeing Jon’s face at finally getting star baker was amazing. The way it shifted from total surprise to bashful pride had her pushing down that ever growing urge to kiss him. At least on the lips. She didn’t hesitate to give him one on his cheek. Because he definitely deserved one for having such a fantastic weekend. She then gave Jeyne a tight hug goodbye, hoping to keep in touch with the shy woman. 

—–Week 6: Pastry Week—–

Dany felt that the pouring down rain matched her mood because her savory samosas were a mess and she could tell Paul and Prue agreed. 

“The top looks a bit too thick which is why it’s split on the side,” Paul told her as they looked at her spicy sweet potato and pea samosas. 

“I‘m sorry,” she murmured, hating that once again, her dough wasn't rolled thin enough, even with it being her second batch. 

“Well, let’s see what it tastes like,” Prue said as Paul cut one open. 

Dany bit her lip as she waited, her interlaced fingers white knuckled from gripping so hard. 

“Flavor’s nice in that one though,” Paul finally said. “Let’s try the chicken and spinach ones.”

“I love that you’re never afraid to go bold on the spices,” Prue told her. 

“Aside from the pastry being too thick, they’re good samosas,” Paul concluded before moving on. 

Jon got a handshake for his cheesy Guinness beef and curry lentil samosas. Prue even described them as poetry. So obviously she was going to eat one. 

Popping one of the curry lentils in her mouth, she let the spices fill her senses and overload her taste buds. Yeah, they were definitely worth a handshake. 

“It’s amazing. Do you usually put a lot of spices in your food?” 

Jon tilted his head in thought. “I s’pose I do.”

“It makes sense,” she nodded sagely. 

“Why’s that?” 

“Because you are smoking hot.” 

Jon snorted. “I walked right into that one, didn’t I?” he asked with a wry grin. 

“You did, yeah,” she chuckled. 

“I could say the same about you,” he replied before blanching, obviously not meaning to have said that out loud. Dany’s smile turned wicked as heat bloomed on his cheeks. “I mean–”

“Nope. No take backs, Jon Snow,” she chirped happily, stealing another samosa and turning before he could say anything else. 

He could barely meet her eye during lunch, but she didn’t mind one bit. 

The first thing Dany thought at hearing Sandi tell them they had to make twelve kouign amann was “bless you.”

“Yeah, we’ve no idea what they are either,” Noel told them all. 

Getting dead last was definitely not fun. Jon whispered some encouragement, which she greatly appreciated. Honestly, did the man have to be so perfect? 

~~~~~~~~

Forty eight phyllo amuse bouche in four hours were… a lot. Especially with these ovens that Dany was sure the crew did something to in order to make the challenges more difficult. She didn’t want to even think about phyllo pastry for at least a month after today. 

Nevertheless, she’d churn out twenty four lobster avocado and twenty four apple chai for Paul and Prue to judge. She had to redeem herself from yesterday’s mishap of too thick dough. 

She was rushing to get all her amuse bouche set out when Jon silently began to help. 

“Thank you, Jon,” she sighed, setting her last one down just as they called time. “You’re so sweet, you’ve got my eyes glazed over like these pastries.” 

Jon was just about to reply when Trystane beat him to it. “I wouldn’t _ ever _ say that again, Dany,” he told her without looking up from washing his hands. 

She scoffed. “I wasn’t even talking to you.” 

Trystane walked over to them, smiling wide as he threw an arm around her shoulders. “Yeah, but I know that my opinion matters to you more than anyone else’s.” 

“You’re right,” she deadpanned, “you’re so much cooler than all us old folks. Who wouldn’t listen to your wise words?” 

“I know you’re being sarcastic, but you are in fact right,” he told her sagely, dropping his arm. 

Dany rolled her eyes at Jon, who huffed a laugh. 

She almost fell to the floor with relief when Paul and Prue told her how much better her pastry was. There was a chance she wasn’t going home. It was small, but she’d hold onto it like a lifeline. 

She really did feel like a proud big sister though when Trystane got star baker. However, it was hard to see Davos go. He was the supportive father figure of the group and was always there for all of them. She was so touched when he told them that he and Marya would definitely expect them all to come over for a potluck dinner soon. Dany said all she needed was a day and time and she’d be there. 

—–Week 7: Botanical Week—–

Dany was ready. This was _ her _ week, she just knew it. Her arsenal was packed full of great flavors. So even if something went wrong, at least they’d be able to say her bakes tasted good.

Though now that she thought that she probably just jinxed herself. 

Upon finding out that they were to do a citrus meringue pie, Dany had decided on doing a lemon cardamom filling with lilac meringue and coconut crust. 

Prue was unfamiliar with _lilac_ meringue and had told her that she was looking forward to seeing what it tasted like. Paul had jokingly moaned to her about her constant use of flower ingredients, but she’d quipped that he shouldn’t lie about hating them. 

She wanted to poke fun at him for it when he begrudgingly told her that it was a great pie and the lilac was very nice, but she had more decorum than to do that. So she just smiled sweetly and knew he could see the laughter in her eyes when he shook his head at her, trying to keep down his own amusement. 

When they got their lunches and walked over to sit down with the others, Dany held up one of the strawberries she’d gotten and whispered, “if you were a strawberry, I’d drizzle balsamic reduction all over you.”

She delighted in the predictable blush that filled his cheeks. He shook his head and whispered back, “you are _ terrible _, Daenerys Targaryen.” 

Dany couldn’t help but laugh, knowing her face was full of fondness as she looked at him yet unable to help it. She took comfort in the fact that Jon seemed to have the issue as he smiled down at her. 

In the afternoon, Dany found herself next to Sandor, both of them on their hands and knees as they peered into his oven to observe the herb fougasse bread they had to make for their technical. 

“That’s what mine look like,” she told him. “But that’s not actually saying much.” 

Sandor snorted and sat back on his knees. “Guess we’ll be findin’ out soon.” 

Taking her own fougasse out of her oven, she tapped each side and was pleased to hear the hardness of them. Getting second again was simultaneously great and annoying. Couldn’t she come in first just _once_? 

~~~~~~~~

Making a three tiered floral cake of three different flavors in four hours left Dany with very little room to make a mistake. At this stage of the competition, the places to hide behind were becoming scarce. 

“I’m doing a naked blossom cake,” she explained. “So I’ll have an apple blossom layer, an orange blossom layer, and an elderberry blossom layer made of genoese sponge. It’ll be covered with a linden buttercream frosting so that it’ll have a nice honey taste and then decorated with candied citrus and flowers.” 

“Well, no one can argue that it isn’t floral enough,” Prue smiled. 

Dany nodded straight faced. “No one takes their edible flowers more seriously than me,” she said before smiling back. 

“I’ll be interested to see how well you get the flavors to come out. Though since you’ve always done so well on flavors before, I expect it’ll be fine for you. Thank you, Dany,” Paul told her, rapping his knuckles on the counter before they moved off. 

_ Wow, no pressure or anything, Paul_, she thought dryly. Of course, that wracked up her paranoia so she constantly tasted her batters to double check. Eating so much raw batter was definitely not something she found particularly enjoyable, but needs must and all that. She preferred taste testing the buttercream. 

Dany definitely felt the pressure standing in front of them as they tasted each layer. When they commented on how moist and light the apple blossom one was, she started to let herself hope. The orange blossom got approved and finally the elderberry blossom layer passed. 

“You’ve done every single layer perfectly,” Paul told her, to her immense relief and pleasure.

Even though she’d walked into the tent with the surety that she’d do well this weekend, she thought Margaery had done a pretty bang up job. She was even turning to look at her during the dramatic pause of announcing the star baker, congratulations on her lips when she heard “Daenerys.” 

She could feel the shock on her face as everyone congratulated her. Well, okay then. She’d take it.

It was obvious that it was hard for Jon to see Sam go, both of them promising to keep in touch. While she’d never say it, Dany was pleasantly surprised to have seen Sam make it this far. He was obviously a very good baker, but it was nice to see that he could in fact handle his own and not buckle under the weight of Paul’s mighty stare. 

—–Week 8: International Week—–

Making cannolis when it was forty degrees out was, in a word… bullshit. Dany didn’t give one iota of a fuck that Italians made them in this kind of weather all summer. Those people weren’t in a giant canvas tent with four other fryers going and a huge camera and production crew with their lights and computers and everything else they had that just added to the heat. 

But was she going to let out the stream of curse words that were in the back of her mind? Of course not. She was going to suck it up, smile for the camera, and crack on. This was the quarter final after all and she’d be damned if she was going to let the heat be her downfall.

She’d been prepared for the heat at least. Having constantly checked her weather app, she’d basically turned her kitchen into a boiler room whenever she practiced making them at home. Did that mean she was going to get them right here? No. But it did mean she’d chosen fillings that weren’t going to turn into goo.

Dany felt that raspberry amaretto, honeydew lemon verbena, and cherry hibiscus cannolis were definitely ones that were good for hot days like this one. Just the thought of a chocolate filled cannoli made her stomach roll. 

Prue apparently agreed with her, saying she could definitely stroll down the street during summer with one of them in hand. Paul had liked the texture of the shells and was pleased with how the honeydew hadn’t gotten overpowered by the lemon verbena. She wasn’t prepared when he stuck out his hand but she was incredibly proud that he thought she deserved a handshake.

Trying to decide which cannoli she wanted to eat shouldn’t have been this hard and yet here she was, staring at them as if they held the answers to the world. Maybe the heat had finally gotten to her brain and she was having a heat stroke.

“You’re staring quite intently at those pastries. Should I leave you all alone?” 

Jolted out of her musings, Dany turned to find Jon next to her with a small smile that she gladly returned. 

“Don’t you worry, Jon Snow. I _cannoli_ have eyes for you,” she said smiling. Having made a decision, she picked up one of her raspberry amaretto cannolis for emphasis and took a bite.

Jon gave a fond smirk before lifting his hand to her face. Dany stilled completely as his thumb gently swiped across the top corner of her lip, getting a small drop of filling. Wide violet eyes watched transfixed as he then stuck said thumb in his mouth and licked the filling off. Was it normal to be so turned on by something so seemingly innocent? Or was it just her? Jon’s eyes met hers as he reached out, took one of amaretto ones, and bit into it. She could practically feel the air crackle between them. 

The moment was broken however, when all of the sudden they both got sprayed with ice cold water, making them jump apart. They turned to find Margaery holding a spray bottle with a stern look. 

“By the gods, it’s boiling hot as it is and that is not helping. Stop it now,” Margaery said. 

Jon’s face turned red as he cleared his throat and mumbled an apology then walked towards Sandor. Dany watched him go before turning to glare at the brunette and wipe the water off her. 

“Was that seriously necessary?” 

Margaery arched an unrepentant brow. “It seriously was. You two were literally eye fucking in front of everyone and this is neither the time nor the place for that.”

Heat flooded her cheeks and she pinched her lips as they stared each other down. Finally, Dany sighed and rolled her eyes. “Fine.” She eyed the bottle for a moment. “Can you spray me again because that actually felt nice.”

Margaery smiled brightly and abided her, letting the mist gently cover Dany’s face. “I know, right? That’s why I brought it.” 

She’d have rather been dunked in that freezing cold water at the moment. Because as Noel and Sandi presented the technical, Dany could only stare at them blankly when they were told what pasteis de natas were and that they had to make twelve in two hours. When she looked around, the others look as lost as she did. Once they got started and she saw the recipe, she lost track of her surroundings. It seemed easy enough, but she knew by now to never get complacent. 

Two hours later, she was stepping back from her Portegeuse custard tarts, not sure how to feel about them. They weren’t horrible, but she wasn’t sure if they were good enough to win. 

Her instincts proved right when she came in fourth. Eh, she’d take that. At least it wasn’t last, right?

~~~~~~~~~

Dany had never made a tres leches cake before this week, much less a four layered one. After her first try with the cake, she’d laughed at how she’d gone into it thinking it was going to be easy. Her cake had basically been mush. And that had been at home , not an outdoor tent where literally anything could go wrong with judges who were expecting nothing less than perfection not just in the texture of the cake but also in decoration. 

She’d settled on a White Russian tres leches with chocolate drizzle and spun sugar, hoping for the best. 

Thankfully, her hoping paid off and kept her in the competition. It was Trystane they had to say goodbye to while Jon got another star baker. She was definitely going to miss Trystane, making him promise that he’d be there whenever they all got together to have dinner. 

She honestly couldn’t believe she’d made it to the semifinal. That was all she could think about as they were all packing up to leave. She was brought out of her thoughts when Jon stopped by her station while everyone else headed out. She smiled at him but noticed there was a nervousness about him she’d never seen before as he cleared his throat. 

“Do you want any raisins?” he asked quietly. Dany’s brow furrowed in confusion as she shook her head no. 

Her confusion grew as a blush began to creep up his neck and he took a breath before asking, “how about a date?”

The first thing that came to her mind was asking him who offered food that they so obviously didn’t have before she realized that she’d seen that exact line on one of the pickup line sites she’d gone to. He was following her lead and using food puns to _ask her on a date_. In the silence that hung as it dawned on her, his blush grew darker and he cleared his throat. Looking away, he rushed out, “I– sorry. I must have misread what was going on. Just forget–”

“You didn’t misread me,” she interrupted softly. 

Grey eyes snapped to her and upon seeing the bright smile that was growing, he let out a huge sigh of relief. “Yeah?” he breathed, his own hopeful smile forming. 

Dany probably resembled that of a bobble head doll she was nodding so fast. “Yeah. I would love a date, Jon Snow.”

The way his eyes turned practically molten as he looked at her had Dany feeling like a silly virgin she was so excited. She didn’t mind though. In fact, she reveled in the feeling because it had to mean something good that Jon Snow was able to elicit it from her. 

“Okay. Okay, great. That’s, um, great,” Jon rushed out, the boyish look of what she guessed was his own excitement turning his already handsome face even more so. 

“It’s definitely great,” she teased. Picking up her things, she came up beside him to walk out together, each carrying their bags on their outside. 

He chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck as he ducked his head in embarrassment. 

After a moment, he turned his head slightly to her and asked, “you’ll still be interested in a date even if one of us doesn’t make it to the final? Or if we both make it and by some chance, I win, yeah? Because I will be. Still interested, I mean. If you win. I mean–” He stopped and took a deep breath. “I just don’t want you to think this is some ploy to have you muck up and not put in your best effort. Or that I’m not going to try my hardest to win.” He winced then and sighed, “I probably should’ve waited till after the whole thing was over, huh?” 

“I don’t mind you asking now,” she told him softly before bumping his shoulder. “It won’t affect my performance in the tent and no matter what happens, I’ll still be interested.” Cheekily, she added, “though I’ll most definitely not stop with the lines. It’s a tradition now.” 

Jon smiled her favorite crooked smile. “I wouldn’t dream of asking you to stop.” 

“Good.” Feeling bold, Dany grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze, only letting go when they reached the bus. 

—–Week 9: Patisserie Week—–

The moment she saw Dany that morning, Margaery pulled her aside and said, “I saw you two looking quite cozy when we left last week. Anything exciting happen?” 

When Dany bit her lip and smiled, the brunette’s eyes widened and she lightly smacked her arm. “Tell me now!” 

Glancing around, she leaned in close and murmured, “he asked me on a date.” 

“Thank the gods!” Margaery exclaimed quietly with laughter. “I honestly could not take one more day of that unresolved sexual tension. I swear, I was getting so hot and bothered by it that I was about ready to jump Paul.”

Dany rolled her eyes at the brunette’s dramatics, but smiled nonetheless. “You’re in luck then because there won’t be time for that today.” 

Margaery snorted and gave Dany a look like she didn’t believe that one bit. Which... okay fair. 

When she’d first thought of ideas for the signature, she’d been tempted to go all out with her two entremets but had ultimately reined herself in. The last thing she needed was to make her recipes too complex and have them flop because she ran out of time. So she decided on an elderflower mousse encased in a strawberry sponge with elderflower jelly on top for one. Then settled for a dragon fruit mousse with a raspberry center and jelly on top over a vanilla sponge cake. 

So it should have been _ somewhat _ easier, right?

Wrong. 

Dany bit her lip as she took the molding off of one of the dragon fruit mousses and it sagged a bit. 

_Shit, shit, shit. It’s not setting. _

Taking a deep breath, she pushed down the panic that wanted to take over and quickly put the tray in the freezer. Luckily, her elderflower ones seemed to be stable. So at least she wasn’t going to present two bad bakes. Because at the end of the day, she wanted to make it to the final and she was so close to achieving that. 

She would not allow a damn mousse to conquer her. If anyone was a conqueror, it was _her_. 

Okay, this one time, the mousse won because they were still a bit saggy when she set them out, but it was too late to do anything about it. Prue said that if she closed her eyes and didn’t actually look at the dragon fruit mousse, it was delicious. So Dany took that as a win. 

Jon’s peanut butter mousse with salted caramel and his passion fruit and chocolate were standing much better than hers. Her competitive side couldn’t help but feel the tiniest bit jealous, especially when Paul and Prue told him how good it was. Yet the moment his eyes caught hers and she could see how he was trying to gauge her reaction, the conversation they had last night came to the forefront and her jealousy burned up into ash. She quietly clapped and whispered, “yay.” 

It was a shame that Margaery’s weren’t set either and they hadn’t found the flavor of her green tea and white chocolate mousse very exciting. She gave the woman a conciliatory hug then waited on Jon. 

“I think _ you’re _ peanut butter because you’re making my legs feel like jelly,” she said as they walked out of the tent. 

Playfully rolling his eyes, he slid his hand around her waist and pinched her lightly. She let out a weird squeak that had Jon cracking up, not even caring when she smacked him on the arm. 

If they happened to sit so close to each other during lunch that their thighs and arms were constantly touching, no one commented and when he casually slung his arm over her shoulders, she basked in it. 

A torta setteveli? _Sounds like a trap_, Dany thought as she pulled the gingham off her ingredients. 

A seven layered cake was most definitely a trap. She knew Prue would be looking for perfection and Dany planned on giving her such. Because by everything holy, if she was leaving this tent then she was going to do so with a technical win under her belt. 

Sitting there as Paul and Prue put Margaery in fourth and Jon in third, she waited for one of them to point to hers for second. But Paul went to the other side of the table and gave it to Sandor. 

Finally! She’d _ finally _ won a technical! Dany couldn’t keep the cheek splitting grin off her face as everyone congratulated her. Even though she was riding high on her win, she knew she still had to get through tomorrow. 

That didn’t mean she didn’t love the way Jon lifted her off her feet when he hugged her in congratulations. 

~~~~~~~~

Thirty six fondant fancies. Eighteen chocolate pomegranate and eighteen black currant mint. Four and a half hours. She could do this. She’d practiced and practiced. 

The moment her cakes were in the oven, she began working on her buttercreams, fondants, and decorations. 

Spreading the buttercreams on each sponge cube was her least favorite part of making fancy fondant. She she started pouring the fondant frosting over them, she couldn’t help but start bouncing from one foot to the other. Though it was more like just bending her knees so her upper body could keep still. Noel caught her and began chanting, “you can do it” until she finally covered all of them. 

She rushed to get her fondant bows and fresh black currants on them. She then stuck little “Eat Me” signs in a few of them before placing them onto her Alice in Wonderland inspired tray. 

It was gutting when Paul said that the flavors for the black currant mint ones _ didn’t _ work because there wasn’t enough mint and that the sponge was too dry. To have Prue say it was disappointing since Dany was usually so good on her flavors was probably the worst experience she’d had in awhile. 

Did that mean she was going to get sent home?

The fact that Sandor won his second star baker this week made part of her want to crack up. Only because having watched the giant of a man delicately decorate his fondant fancies was a moment she’d never forget. But he definitely deserved it. 

As they waited to hear who was going home, she prepared herself to be the one. She planned on nicking her apron and maybe a decoration or whisk or something. 

But they didn’t say her name. 

It was so much harder than she thought it would be to know that Margaery wouldn’t be in the tent with her next week. She squeezed the other woman tightly as they hugged. 

Seeming to know what she was thinking, Margaery whispered, “like you could get rid of me so easily, Daenerys Targaryen. You’re officially stuck with me now outside of this tent.” 

Dany let out a watery chuckle as she pulled back to look at the brunette who had become so dear to her. “I wouldn’t have it any other way,” she replied. 

Margaery beamed at her before giving her another quick hug. “Good luck. I’ll be outside rooting for you. And _ by the gods _, if you don’t kiss that man at the tea party, I’m going to beat you.” 

This time, Dany’s laugh was full of mirth. After a quick kiss on the cheek, she let go so Margaery could hug everyone else and tell them goodbye. 

Both Paul and Prue told her she’d have to really work hard next week and she swore up and down that she wouldn’t disappoint them. 

It was only when she was talking to the camera after that it truly hit her. 

_ By the gods, I’m in the final. _

—–Week 10: Final—–

If Dany thought she was nervous when she first walked into the tent, it was nothing compared to how she felt now. She’d been practicing like mad this past week, getting just enough sleep to keep her faculties. Otherwise, she was writing up orientation policies or in the kitchen. She was so frantic about practicing that even her dogs had avoided the kitchen. 

Now here they were, the light rain tap, tap, tapping on the tent, preparing to make their signature of two types of viennoiserie, twelve of each. 

“So, my flavors are based on all my mum’s favorites, as a tribute to her,” she told them. “She loved spiced plum and pecan chaussons. Then I’m doing lemon ginger cream cheese danishes.”

None of them commented on how she used the past tense to describe her mother, but she could see the sympathetic looks in their eyes, especially Prue and Sandi. 

Thanking her, they let her get to work. It was weird with how quiet the tent was. Every time she talked, she felt like she needed to whisper. 

They went to Sandor first. They didn’t like his pain au chocolat blanc with raspberry and cream cheese, feeling the chalkiness of the cream cheese didn’t combine well with an already dry pastry. His caramel apple chaussons however, were better even though they were slightly over baked. 

When they came to her, Paul commented on how her dough could have been a bit thicker for her chaussons, but he was still pleased with the layers. She wanted to kick herself though when they told her than her danishes were under proved. What a simple mistake to make. At least Prue was glad to see that her flavors were good again. 

On the other hand, both Jon’s pain au chocolats with pear and apple lemon kites were baked perfectly according to Paul and Prue. Which, of course they were. He got star baker for pastry week. She was going to make him do any and all pastry work in the future. 

That thought made Dany pull up short and blink. She was getting way too ahead of herself. They hadn’t even been on a proper date yet! The implication her subconscious was making that this man was going to be in her life for a long time was a bit overwhelming. Yet when she caught his eye as she hopped off her stool and he gave one of his crooked smiles, that greedy part of her wasn’t afraid of the implication at all if it meant getting those smiles every day. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Making the ten gingerbread biscuits for their technical wasn’t too bad. It was the intricate piping and icing that made Dany want to run out of there screaming. Her lower back was screaming from having to bent over for so long, her hands were starting to shake and cramp around her pinky, and if she didn’t ice and pipe a biscuit for the rest of her life, it’d be too soon. 

When time was called, Dany threw her icing bag down with a loud groan. It definitely wasn’t the best icing job she’d done, but fuck it, she finished. 

As they took their trays up to the gingham alter, she peeked at Jon’s. She pressed her lips together to keep from laughing at how bad some of them looked. 

She obviously didn’t school her features quick enough because when she glanced up at him, he gave her a warning look. 

“Don’t even,” he mumbled, “you _ know _ I’m rubbish at small piping.” 

After setting her tray down, she turned to him and made a zipping motion across her mouth and mimed throwing away the key.

Getting second wasn’t so bad. Jon obviously came in third with Sandor taking the win. 

As they left the tent, Dany had absolutely no idea who was going to win. It really was anyone’s game now. 

~~~~~~~~~~

Today was the day. Today, on this sunny English summer day, one of them would be proclaimed as this year’s bake off winner. Her family would be out there waiting for her. Rhaegar, Elia, Aegon, and Rhaenys had all come over from Spain, which had made her scream in excitement when they showed up at her house Friday night because it was a complete surprise that all four of them had been able to make it. They had gone and picked up Uncle Aemon to bring him. She had been ready to beg her uncle to come when she’d told him she was in the final and wanted him to be there since he was why she had made it. Thankfully, he’d readily agreed. Missandei, Grey, and even Gendry had come down as well. She knew she was going to cry when she saw all of them. 

She’d texted Jon last night saying that she planned on introducing him to her family while they were all in one place. Jon being Jon, he’d agreed as long as she planned on meeting his family. He’d then made a joke about how she could see what “baggage” he came with and decide if she even wanted to go on the first date.

She’d just sent him an eye rolling emoji. 

But before any of that happened, they needed to bake their cakes. Everything was riding on their showstoppers. They had to present a multi tiered layered cake centerpiece that and each tier had to be on its own stand. 

Keeping to yesterday’s theme, Dany chose her mother’s favorite kind of cake. White cake with toasted, slivered almonds. Handmade whipped cream to layer and cover it. Then coconut shavings covered the sides and top with a few mixed inside the cake and white chocolate shavings on top. 

She was going to do an ombré style going from white to a dark blue, representing the sky and each tier would have two different shades of blue. She was going to sprinkle each with some edible silver glitter to be stars. To top it off, she was going to have a white fondant Chinese style dragon with silver and gold plumage and violet eyes diving in and out of each layer, emerging from the top. 

“You seem to like dragons quite a bit,” Paul said lightheartedly after she finished explaining. 

“To be fair, this one is to represent my mum. Because she’s the reason I’m so fond of them,” she replied honestly as she continued mixing her cake batter. “I loved them so much when I was young after I saw “Spirited Away” and when I got bullied, I told her that I wished I was a dragon because then no one would be mean to me. She told me that I was a dragon on the inside, I just looked like a little girl. And whenever I felt scared or upset or anything, to remember that I was stronger than anyone because I had the blood of the dragon in me. And it’s just stuck with me.”

They all had soft, sympathetic smiles once she was done. 

“That’s really lovely,” Noel said in a quiet voice. 

“Thanks,” she replied with a soft smile of her own. 

Then they were gone and all her focus was on her cake. The only time she looked up from her bench was if she had to go to the fridge. The only time she talked was to the camera, and even then it was only what was necessary to say. 

The moment time was called and they all stepped back, everyone in the tent began clapping and cheering. Dany gathered both men into a group hug, all of them murmuring their congratulations to each other. Then Noel and Sandi were hugging them all, Sandi trying not to cry. It was officially done. There was nothing more any of them could do now except hope for the best. 

Jon was first to present his orange crunch cake. They were pleased with the texture of each layer. After tasting it all, Paul said he’d never had an orange cake that tasted as good as Jon’s. The spices in it complimented the vanilla and orange flavors to perfection. Prue said his buttercream was divine. 

Understandably, Dany couldn’t help but worry a bit. Because how was she supposed to follow that?

When they both said that Sandor’s carrot cake was the best carrot cake they’d ever had and explained what exactly it was that they liked, she was now getting really worried. With her luck, hers was going to be horrible after both of theirs were perfect. 

Before her panic could spiral, Sandi called her up. 

As she placed her showstopper on the table, Dany knew that no matter what happened, she’d put her heart and soul into it. She just hoped that Paul and Prue would be able to see that and deem it worthy. She was pleased that she’d gotten her coconut shavings to match the blue icings to a tee and that the fine edible silver glitter she’d scattered on it didn’t make it look tacky or garish.

Could she have gone with a smooth finish instead of the shavings? Yes, but Rhaella had loved the shavings the most, so they were staying.

“It’s a very nice design,” Prue said. “The detail you put into your decorations continues to amaze me.”

She held her breath as Paul cut into each tier and set the pieces onto the plate. 

“Lovely, even layers,” Prue said, pointing to each. “The whipped cream filling looks very good and light.”

“You can tell the texture’s the same in each one just by looking at them,” Paul agreed as he poked the pieces. Then he and Prue began tasting each one. 

The tension in her body relaxed a little when Prue closed her eyes and hummed in approval. 

“It’s delicious,” she said at last with a smile. The corners of Dany’s mouth lifted ever so slightly as Prue continued. “It’s just the right amount of sweet. I could honestly have it for breakfast and be perfectly content. Most definitely worth the calories.”

Her gaze then turned to Paul, who was looking down at the table. He rapped his knuckles on the table and shook his head before finally meeting her eye. “Oh, Dany,” he sighed, briefly stopping her heart before he smiled and it started again. “It’s perfect.” Dany let out a huge sigh of relief and smiled for real. “It’s moist and light. The textures of the almonds and coconut shavings mix beautifully with the cake and whipped cream, the flavors…yeah, I love it.”

Even with her happiness, she couldn't hold back a few her tears when Paul pointed to the cake and said,“if your mum could be here to taste this cake, I know she’d love it and she’d be incredibly proud of you.”

Wiping her eyes, she let out a watery chuckle and kept thanking them both. When she reached out to take it, Sandi discreetly rubbed her back and whispered, “well done, dear.” 

As she went to sit back down, Jon gave her a small smile and whispered, “it’s over.”

She nodded and let out another sigh. Yeah, it really was. And she had no idea who was going to win.

~~~~~~~~~~

Even after all the stress she’d gone through, knowing she was never going to get to go back into that tent was… well, it was a little bit heartbreaking if she was being honest. A few tears escaped as she told the camera how much she was going to miss it all. 

Once their solo interviews were done, they were given their cakes and told to go on outside. Walking out to everyone was a great experience. Seeing the smiles on her family’s faces and having each of them hug her and tell her how proud they were made her heart want to soar. To say she’d been shocked to see that _all_ the monks had come and closed the monastery for the day was an understatement. She had almost burst into tears when she saw that there were almost twenty monks outside the tent, so touched that her second family had come to support her. Drogon, Rhaegal, and Viserion were eating up all the attention they were getting and ecstatic that they were getting bites of human food. She absolutely loved the little banner Missandei had made to go on Viserion’s wheel chair that said, “go mum!”

She got a glimpse of Jon’s family. Most of his cousins had varying shades of red hair which they obviously got from their mum. Only one of the girls had dark hair like Jon and his uncles.

They all sat down and began eating the food from her challenges so the camera could film it. Once that was done, Paul, Prue, Noel, and Sandi came out carrying the flowers and cake stand and everyone began applauding and cheering. Noel called the three of them up and Dany ended up being in the middle. She grabbed both of their hands whispering good luck to each of them. 

“I’m so honored to announce this year’s winner,” Sandi said. “I wish it could be all three of you because you all did an amazing job this weekend, but there can only be one.” 

Dany took a deep, steadying breath. 

“And the winner is….” 

She squeezed Jon’s hand and she was pretty sure all three of them were now holding their breaths as they waited. Though she had a feeling it was going to be Sandor since he won the technical and did well on his showstopper.

“Daenerys.”

Her mouth fell open in total disbelief, thinking for a moment that she imagined it. But when everyone began cheering, she covered her face and burst into tears. Jon wrapped her up in a tight hug, murmuring his congratulations while Sandor did the same, patting her back. 

Lifting her head, she looked up at Jon and began laughing through her tears. She threw her arms around his neck and couldn’t resist burying her face in the spot between his neck and shoulder and giving him a kiss there. She only let go when Paul, Prue, Sandi, and Noel came up to them. 

When Paul held out the cake stand to her, she couldn’t stop crying and laughing as she asked, “are you sure?” 

He laughed and pulled her into a one armed hug. “Well done, Dany. You deserve it.”

“Thank you so much,” she told him, hugging him back.

Prue came up to her next with the flowers. “You did so wonderfully, my dear,” she told Dany with a huge smile, wiping her tears away before hugging her. She cried harder when Prue said how she knew she’d made her mother proud and how proud _she_ was, her own voice choked with emotion. Then Noel and Sandi hugged and congratulated her, with Sandi a bit tearful as well, before her family crowded around her, her children barking and dancing around her feet as they fed off the excitement.

When she hugged uncle Aemon, she brokenly thanked him and told him how she wouldn’t be here without him. 

“Nonsense, my sweet girl,” he said, just as emotional. “It was all you.”

She knew that wasn’t true, at least not entirely. But she just squeezed him harder before moving on to hug the other monks. 

All the other contestants came up and hugged the three of them, everyone talking about everything. She was able to introduce Margaery to Missandei and having told each of them so much about the other, the two easily clicked. Standing next to Jon amongst these people who never would have come together without this show made warmth grow in her chest. These were her friends, her baking family.

Her inner musings were interrupted when she caught Margaery’s eye. The brunette gave her a stern look before pointedly darting her eyes to Jon then back to her then to Jon again. 

Dany pressed her lips together to try and hold back her smile but failed. The adrenaline of it all was still pumping in her veins, leaving her feeling wonderfully bold as she turned and nudged Jon. 

When his attention was on her, she gave him a faux haughty look. “I believe that the winner also gets a victory kiss.”

Jon arched a brow at her, eyes twinkling. “Is that so?”

“Yes,” she said, arching towards him with a close lipped smile. 

Mirroring her expression, he leaned down and gave her a chaste kiss that honestly made her feel like she was full of light. Everyone around them began to scream and cheer before they were both bombarded by the other contestants. Their exclamations of “finally!” and “about bloody time!” had them both laughing with joy. 

When she got pulled aside for an interview, she tried to keep her composure when asked about how she was feeling about winning, but it immediately broke again when she said, “I just wish my mum could be here to see this. Because it was all for her.” 

The tea party was a blast. She wasn’t sure how many pictures she took, but she wanted as many as she could get so that she could frame one of the best experiences of her life.

Meeting Jon’s family was a treat. A bit overwhelming at first, but still a treat. His cousins were so diverse. She thought Arya was a spitfire and found it funny that she could so easily embarrass Jon with just a few words. His aunt and uncles were very kind and inviting. 

Her family was much more when she introduced them to Jon. Though Elia kept waggling her eyebrows at Dany when Jon wasn’t looking. She couldn’t hold back the blush when her sister in law whispered, “he is _ fit_. You better keep him.”

Dany smirked at her. “I plan to.” 

Then their families converged and Dany decided it was the perfect time to mingle. Though she did notice the looks the younger girl kept throwing towards Gendry before she left. After Margaery introduced Dany to her family, she found Jon walking away from Sam and his mum and siblings. She caught up to him and bumped him with her hip. 

Smiling up at him, she cheekily asked, “are you a cake? ‘Cause I want a piece of that.” 

Jon heaved a huge sigh as he put his arm around her waist and brought her flush against him. She snaked her arm around him as well, liking that she could. Her entire body felt electrified when he pressed his lips to her temple. 

“You know, I feel the same way, Daenerys Targaryen.”

—–Epilogue—–

It was so weird to watch herself on TV. While they were filming, she’d known that they would be, of course. But actually seeing it and knowing that there were people _ around the world _ watching was… terrifying. And not just watching. Oh no, they were judging her. Not just her bakes but as a person as well. She knew there were going to be people who would like her and people who wouldn't. Being loved or hated by absolute strangers was still a concept she couldn’t wrap her head around. Along with the fact that soon, she’d be having to appear on talk shows and cooking shows. She made Jon promise that he’d come with her if his work schedule allowed it. 

At the same time though, it was exciting to see which bits got put in and to hear what the other bakers said in their interviews. It was also nostalgic to be able to go back to the tent in a way. And it was interesting to get to hear Paul and Prue’s opinions. She felt on top of the world every time they said something nice about her. 

So every week, Dany found herself on the couch to relive her summer, her children at her feet as they munched on their evening chews, though one of them had to have a _ much _ larger chew. 

“Do I always look so dour?”

She turned to Jon with a grin. “I like to think of you more as brooding and mysterious. The perfect poker face.” 

A dark brow arched up before he gave her a soft, amused smile when both of their phones alerted them to texts. It was an unspoken agreement between several of the contestants and their families that they would live text about each episode. 

Jon glanced at his phone and scoffed. Turning it to her, she saw a text from Arya. 

_ Gods Jon do u HAVE to the gloomiest resting bitch face? _

Dany snorted and patted the arm that was slung around her shoulders before showing him the text from Margaery. 

_ Ugh. If people can’t see the bedroom eyes you two give each other in just these small clips then I am done because I refuse to suffer having to have dealt with your blatant sexual tension alone_

_ I think it’s more heart eyes_, she replied just as it came back on. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Watching herself cry over her win was a bit embarrassing. She didn’t know why, but it was. 

She did get choked up listening to everything Rhaegar and Uncle Aemon said in their interviews about her. It was sweet that Paul admitted that _ he _ got a bit emotional, knowing what this meant to Dany and especially when he heard her and Prue’s exchange. It was touching to hear him say it was pure magic how she was able to see flavors that no one else did and that was part of what made her an amazing baker. 

She also sat up straighter when Jon’s interview about her winning started. 

_ “I’m just so happy for Dany. To me, she’s been a queen the entire competition and she deserves this.” _ He then got a soft, secretive smile as he said, _ “I met so many amazing people and got to have this experience. I definitely think I won in my own way.” _

After the second part of her interview where she said that achieving this dream gave her confidence that she could achieve her other dreams ended, they showed what they were all doing now. Pictures of how Jon and Sam still met up, her and Margaery becoming best friends, another of them with Jeyne and Trystane, and several of them over at Davos’ house. The last picture was one of her, Jon, and all the dogs on a weekend getaway to the White Cliffs of Dover. Jon was laughing at the camera while Dany pressed a kiss to his cheek, the dogs around their feet. The text below it stated that they were happily dating. 

Dany turned to Jon to find him already looking at her, his grey eyes soft. 

“You bet your arse we’re happy,” she said before pulling him down to her. Jon let out a chuckle before eagerly meeting her lips with his, pushing her down onto the couch. 

“Aye, I’d say we are, my queen,” he murmured as he pulled her top off, showing her exactly what he felt with her. 

**Author's Note:**

> 40 degrees C is 104 degrees F (and yes, it was that hot in the tent during the cannoli challenge during Italian week on the show)
> 
> So... that happened. Hope you liked it! Give a kudos if you did! Because it’s not that hard to press a button and that and comments are the only payment fanfic writers get. So please be generous about giving them to any fic you read.


End file.
